“Do you hear my voice?”
Hello and welcome to the first of our November Blogs “Do you hear my voice?”.
There will be a second blog post in November as there is just so much to tell you about! For now, grab a cuppa or settle yourself down somewhere quiet for a few minutes. Easier said that done right? Busy old lives that we lead………
I’ve missed putting pen to paper since my last blog before the Summer holidays, but I’ve finally had an opportunity to sit down and share a few thoughts. It’s been an incredibly busy Autumn both professionally and personally. There’s been all sorts of new projects to plan, as well as new, exciting and daunting phases in my family life. I’m very excited to be here now though and to sharing all sorts of news with you over the next few days, weeks and months.
As a choir leader, I am constantly aware of the many different voices I work with on a weekly basis. I now have the luxury of working with over 250 voices per week which feels like quite a responsibility. Everybody’s voice is different, but they all have one thing in common ; the desire to feel heard, to feel understood and to be responded to appropriately. In our fast paced world, it sometimes feels as though the human voice is the least effective way of communicating, and yet, our body language, our tone of voice and the ability to say what we mean, and mean what we say, appear to sometimes get lost in translation.
It seems at times, that all around us there are moments when those with the loudest voices are the only ones being heard. We all have a voice, it’s how and when we choose to vocalise and verbalise our thoughts,and how to use our voices effectively which can make the difference in feeling misunderstood, or empowered and valued. Every day the news is full of stories of how voices are not being heard. It really is time to change, to feel heard, to feel understood and valued by everyone around us, regardless of our age, race, gender or ethnicity.
Later this month, I am very proud to be presenting a TEDx talk called “do you hear my voice?” It’s my opportunity to share some thoughts to a wider audience, albeit it for just 16 minutes. So much to talk about in such a short amount of time. I’ve been practising and preparing my talk for almost 51 years and I feel hugely honoured to have been invited as one of the speakers. I look forward to seeing you in the audience if you are planning on attending.
There’ll be more exciting news for November as I launch the “do you hear my voice?” worldwide campaign. This will be your chance to get involved, make a difference, raise your voice and raise awareness for two beloved charities, both which have helped me understand how to value, respect and use my own voice to create a happier, healthier more respectful world.
Until then, thank you for reading
I can hardly wait to share my next blog with you
best wishes
Mary
Singing it back founder and Choir leader.